The violence came just over a month before Brazil hosts the World Cup in 12 cities, including Recife, though matches there will take place at another venue, the Pernambuco Arena.

Brazil has been racing to get ready for the tournament amid a series of construction delays and huge cost overruns.

It will cost more than $11 billion to stage the event which the five-times champions last hosted in 1950 on a much smaller scale.

The bill has angered many citizens who say the money spent at new state of the art stadiums, some in cities without a major team, such as Recife itself, would have been better directed towards upgrading poor public services.

Last June, more than a million Brazilians marched nationwide to decry the cost of the Cup and some recent protests, while smaller, have ended in violence.